Dulcimer

ABSTRACT

A dulcimer construction in which the side members of the sound box are trapezoidal in cross section with the narrowest edge engaging the sounding board and the broader of the two narrow edges engaging the bottom board and with the lower (larger) end of the sound box spaced from the sounding board altogether.

United States Patent [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 7/1891 Hobill....................,......

[72] inventor Lendrum A. MacEachron 511,009 12/1893 Bocker..... 1,649,559 11/1927 Bacon 2,977,835 4/1961 H0rnseth...............

[22] Filed Aug. 19, 1968 [45] Patented Feb. 9, 1971 Primary ExaminerRichard B. Wilkinson Assistant Examiner-Lawrence R. Franklin 54 DULCIMER 3 Claims 3 Drawing Figs ABSTRACT: A dulcimer construction in which the side mem- [52] U.S. on with the g board and the broader aging the bottom board and with e lower (larger) end of the so sounding board altogether.

bers of the sound box are trapezoidal in cross secti narrowest edge engaging the soundin of the two narrow edges eng th und box spaced from the G101] 1/00 [50] Field of 84/173, 275, 284, 285, 291, 290, 267

PATENTED FEB 9 l97| Yip;

FIG. 5

INVENI'OR. LENDRUM A. MAC-EACHROI ATTORNEYS DULCIMER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Heretofore dulcimers have been made pretty much in the same manner as other musical instruments, namely by making the sounding box from very thin strips of wood that can be steam or heat bent into the desired shapes and secured to the other members making up the sound box by means of narrow bracing strips where any two thin pieces come together. Furthermore, until recently, the tail stocks of dulcimers were rigidly secured to the sound box in a manner reminiscent of other musical instruments. Within the last years a technique has been evolved in those forms of dulcimers where the sound box narrows to the width of the string board at the tail block to let the string board clear the tail block and cut relief lines into the sounding board for a space of 3 to 4 inches to allow some freedom for the end of the string board to vibrate.

Also traditionally the sounding board has sound holes cut in it which theoretically permit the sound to escape from the box. There is some difference of opinion as to the importance that the bottom of the sound box plays in generating the resonance of the instrument. Some people think that the bottom does play an important part and others deny the same and indicate that any form of bottom board is adequate.

Presently, most dulcimers are handmade, one at a time and cost in the neighborhood of from $60.00 to $150.00, depending on how elaborate and how large they are.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention is a simplified form of dulcimer construction which employs substantially all straight saw cuts in order to make the parts thereof. Therefore, it can be mass produced readily using the more moderately priced woods to retail for a price of $40.00 or less. By cutting the side and end members in a shape that has a trapezoidal cross section, much of the usual bracing is eliminated. Of the two narrow edges of the side and end pieces, the wider one may be glued to the bottom and the narrow one glued to the top which eliminates altogether the joint forming brace members normally used.

In addition, the member that forms the end of the box near the tail piece or lower nut of the instrument is relieved so that it avoids contacting the sounding board altogether.

This leaves the entire lower end of the sounding board free to vibrate and greatly increases the volume that can be obtained from the instrument. In addition, it eliminates the necessity for having sound holes in the sounding board which retains the entire sounding board surface for vibration and resonance purposes which again enhances the potential volume of the instrument but simplifies its construction.

The invention is illustrated in the following drawings which are described briefly as follows:

IN THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an instrument according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged end view showing the free sounding board at the tail piece or lower nut end of the instrument; and

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS As shown in FIG. 1 the instrument is provided with the traditional string board 10 which has the usual frets l 1 for purposes of stopping the strings to change their pitch. Strings 12 are stretched between a lower nut 14 and the upper nut 15. Ordinary tuning pegs 16 are employed to tighten the strings and hold them at a given tension. The tail piece 17 holds the Turning to FIG. 2 where one of the major features of the invention can be seen more clearly, we again see the tail piece 17 with the holes 22 through which the strings 12 extend to any securing means such as the peg 24. At 25 is seen a member which has substantial tensile strength running in its longest dimension to act as a brace for tail piece 17 which has the grain running vertically therein. Peg 24 may also be part of a bolt extending into the interior of string board 10 to secure member 25 and the tail piece rigidly to the string board. As can be clearly seen in FIG. 2 the two halves of the sounding board 18 and 18a extend from the sides to the lower edges of the string board and are secured thereto. The end piece 20 is clearly seen to have a space between it and the string boards 18 and 18a.

Twenty-six designates one of two reinforcing and bridging members that extend across the end of the sound board 18 and a similar unit 26a serves the same purpose for sounding board half 18 a. This is a conventional means of bridging any soft spots in the grain of the sounding board halves and at the same time reinforcing the otherwise rather thin and fragile edge of the sounding board.

Bottom member 21 is also seamed as it appears at 27 so that both it and the sounding boards are cut from rectangular pieces by cutting a diagonal through the rectangle, In the case of the bottom this produces two trapezoidal portions (right trapezoids) which are edge glued along the side forming a right angle with the ends.

In FIG. 3 the simplicity of the box construction is clearly shown by the side member 19 being cut from a rectangular piece in cross section on a bias so that there is a narrow upper edge 28 and a broader lower edge 29. The lower edges are glued to the bottom member 21 while the upper edges provide a narrow edge to engage the sounding board while leaving most of it free to vibrate. At 30 can be seen the line representing the joint between the side member 19 and the upper end piece 31 which is just below the upper nut, as viewed in FIG. 1.

While the construction described in is very much simpler than that of most instruments of this general type, it produces sound effects as good as, and in some respects perhaps better than, instruments made from similar materials but using more traditional methods of construction. The principal defect in the instrument is that this form of construction makes for somewhat more weight than is true of some of the instruments that are made by traditional methods. However, since the total weight of the instrument is something on the order of one pound and certainly not over two pounds, this is not a serious problem and and simplification of the construction is well worth the additional weight involved.

I claim:

1. An improved, stringed musical instrument of the type having:

a. a string board extending the length of the instrument and having tuning pegs and nut at one end and string anchors and lower nut or bridge at the other whereby the string board absorbs the tension of the strings stretched over the nut and lower nut or bridge;

. a sounding board structure secured to the string board and extending on both sides thereof; and

a sound box comprising a bottom, sides, an upper end near the nut and a lower end near the lower nut or bridge, the improvement comprising said sound box having its sides and upper end secured to said sounding board structure but the lower end of said sound box near the lower nut or bridge remaining spaced from at least most of the portion of the said sound board structure near to it.

2. The stringed musical instrument of claim 1 in which the sides of the said sound box are trapezoidal in section with the wider of the two narrow edges down and the narrower of the two narrow edges up.

3. The stringed musical instrument of claim I in which said sounding board structure has no sound holes cut into it directly. 

1. An improved, stringed musical instrument of the type having: a. a string board extending the length of the instrument and having tuning pegs and nut at one end and string anchors and lower nut or bridge at the other whereby the string board absorbs the tension of the strings stretched over the nut and lower nut or bridge; b. a sounding board structure secured to the string board and extending on both sides thereof; and c. a sound box comprising a bottom, sides, an upper end near the nut and a lower end near the lower nut or bridge, the improvement comprising said sound box having its sides and upper end secured to said sounding board structure but the lower end of said sound box near the lower nut or bridge remaining spaced from at least most of the portion of the said sound board structure near to it.
 2. The stringed musical instrument of claim 1 in which the sides of the said sound box are trapezoidal in section with the wider of the two narrow edges down and the narrower of the two narrow edges up.
 3. The stringed musical instrument of claim 1 in which said sounding board structure has no sound holes cut into it directly. 